Previous featured articles
This is an archive of Previously featured articles which appear on the main page. The date of each featured article is listed below as well. Please note: This year, the main page will not contain featured articles as it is being used to celebrate the park's 20th anniversary. Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit is a roller coaster located at Universal Studios Florida in the Production Central area, the park's newest attraction. This custom-designed attraction created by coaster manufacturer Maurer Sohne features an on-board sound system to provide a soundtrack for the 3,800-foot roller coaster track, as well as video cameras to record the experience. The attraction had already been in a soft pre-production from late 2007 to early 2008, and was officially announced by Universal in February, 2008. Construction began in April, 2008 and concluded in May, 2009. Initially planned for a Spring 2009 opening, "Rockit' was delayed until Summer 2009. It began a soft opening on August 16, 2009 and was officially opened by Universal on August 19, 2009. The attraction employs a unique feature which allows guests to choose a music track from numerous artists of different genres to listen to on the ride, while video cameras attached to the ride vehicle record their experience. The music track and video footage are then edited into a music video which guests may watch and purchase at the exit of the attraction. The coaster itself also features other unique track layouts, such as a 267 ft. vertical lift and drop, as well as a non-inverting loop, the "crowd surfer" (in which the coaster goes through the queue of Twister...Ride it Out), and the "chorus" (a series of sharp turns the coaster traverses in front of Blue Man Group Sharp Aquos Theatre). Despite using a lap bar rather then a shoulder bar, the restraint is very tight and keeps riders "sandwiched" into their sets. A series of hidden tracks was discovered on the ride in Fall, 2009 ranging from artists such as Elton John, Eminem, Blue Man Group and the Muppets; However, the hidden tracks cannot be heard in the finished music video. A section of the attraction where the vehicle drops down for the first time was previously used as a tour area for the park's former Production Studio Tour. Nov. 2-3 2009 The Simpsons Ride The Simpsons Ride is a motion simulator ride featured at the Universal Studios Florida theme park. The ride is based on the animated television series The Simpsons. It was first announced in 2007 and replaced the Back to the Future: The Ride in the World Expo area of the park. The ride at Universal Studios Florida soft opened on April 23, 2008, and the official ceremonies took place on May 15, 2008. A duplicate of the ride at Universal Studios Hollywood opened on May 19, 2008 in the Upper Lot area. The Simpsons Ride was collaborated on by the producers of The Simpsons, and uses computer generated 3D animation, which was provided by Blur Studio and Reel FX. 2D animation was provided by Film Roman. The ride uses state of the art technology, including a new projection system and new hydraulics. Construction began in July, 2007, and concluded in April, 2008. The ride itself is six minutes long, but original footage for the ride can be seen in the queue, and there are also pre-show videos. In the ride, patrons are introduced to a cartoon theme park called Krustyland built by Krusty the Clown. Sideshow Bob, however, is loose from prison to get revenge on Krusty and the Simpson family. At least 24 regular characters from the series make an appearance, all voiced by their original actors. Along with the attraction is a gift shop modeled after the Kwik-E-Mart, which opened in October 2007, as well as a stall selling Simpsons' "Squishees", which opened in January 2008. In homage to the former Back to the Future ride, Doc Brown, the DeLorean time machine and the Institute of Future Technology all appear in the ride's queue video, and the Hill Valley clock tower appears in the actual ride portion. Reception to the ride has been mostly positive. It has been well recieved from The Simpsons fans, and most longtime USF fans consider it a worthy replacement to the Back to the Future ride. Oct. 31-Nov. 1 2009 Halloween Horror Nights Halloween Horror Nights is a Halloween event featured at Universal Studios Florida, one of the theme park's annual events. The event began at Universal Studios in 1991, under the title "Fright Nights", with only one haunted house but with nearly 20 themed shows. After adapting the title "Halloween Horror Nights" in 1992, it has since evolved into one of the scariest, and most popular, Halloween attractions in the U.S. It was housed at Universal Studios Florida from 1991 until 2001, when it was toned down from usual graphic violence out of respect for September 11th victims. It was moved to neighbor park Islands of Adventure in 2002 and remained at the park until it was featured at both Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios in 2004. After another year at Islands of Adventure in 2005, the event returned to Universal Studios to celebrate it's "Sweet 16" anniversary in 2006, and has again continued here to the present. While the event has included popular characters from both Universal and non-Universal horror films such as the Cryptkeeper, Frankenstein's Monster, Count Dracula, the Mummy, Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees and Leatherface, Horror Nights has also introduced it's own original Horror icons created by Universal's design team specifically for the event. Original characters include Jack the Clown, Eddie Schmidt, the Caretaker, the Director and the Storyteller. In 2009, the event is titled "Ripped from the Silver Screen" and features numerous characters from some of the most popular Horror movies in history, such as sub-icons Billy (from Saw), Chucky and Wolfman, with the original character the Usher serving as the main event icon. In 2007, Halloween Horror Nights was rated one of America's best Halloween events by Haunted Attractions Magazine. The 2009 event will run for one more night this year; Halloween. Oct. 29-30 2009 Universal Studios Florida Universal Studios Florida is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. Opened on June 7, 1990, the park offers guests the phrase "Jump into the Action!", and features various rides, shows and attractions based on today's most popular films, televison shows and music. The most recent new attractions which the park has opened include Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, The Universal Music Plaza Stage, The Simpsons Ride and Disaster!: A Major Motion Picture Ride...Starring You!. Universal Studios Florida is also a real movie and TV production facility. It has been used multiple times in the past to film and produce multiple productions. Characters and attractions at the park are also not limited to Universal's library; in the past, the park has licenced multiple characters for use in the park such as the Blue Man Group, Nicktoons, Shrek characters, The Simpsons, the Men in Black, the characters of Hanna-Barbera, Beetlejuice and the Ghostbusters. The park also formerly housed numerous classical attractions which have since been replaced by newer additions; some of these former entities include Kongfrontation and Back to the Future: The Ride. Universal also hosts multiple annual events for guest entertainment, including the always popular Halloween Horror Nights. In 2008, the park was ranked as the fifth most visited park in the USA, and the eleventh most visited park on the Earth. Category:Special pages